Praline Turtle Cake

Country Living shares this winning recipe from our "Mom's Best Cake Contest."

Level:
Moderate

Serves:
16

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Ingredients

½ c. butter

1 c. brown sugar

1 can sweetened condensed milk

1 c. chopped pecans

2 c. all-purpose flour

¾ c. unsweetened cocoa

2 c. granulated sugar

1½ tsp. baking powder

1½ tsp. baking soda

1 tsp. Salt

2 large 2 large eggs

1 c. sour cream

½ c. canola oil

1 tsp. vanilla extract

1 tsp. white vinegar

½ c. fudge topping

½ c. chocolate chips

Directions

Make the cake: Heat oven to 350 degrees F. Butter the bottoms of two 9-inch round cake pans and fit a circle of parchment paper large enough to cover 1 inch up the side of each cake pan. Heat the butter, brown sugar, and sweetened condensed milk in a 2-quart saucepan over medium heat until the butter melts and the sugar is dissolved. Do not boil. Divide the sugar mixture between the prepared pans. Sprinkle 3/4 cup pecans over sugar mixture and set aside to cool. Combine the flour, cocoa, granulated sugar, baking powder, baking soda, and salt together in a large bowl. Add the eggs, sour cream, oil, vanilla, and vinegar, and 1 cup hot water and mix with a wooden spoon until the batter is smooth. Pour the batter into the cake pans -- over sugar mixture -- and bake until a wooden skewer inserted into the cake center comes out clean -- 35 to 40 minutes. Cool cakes in the pans for 10 minutes. Run a knife around the edge of the pans and turn cakes out onto a cooling rack. Remove the paper and cool completely.

Assemble the cake: Spread the fudge topping over the sugar mixture side of one cake layer. Place the second layer over the first and drizzle with the melted chocolate and the remaining 1/4 cup pecans. Frost the cake sides with your favorite chocolate icing.